Maize and Derby play much-needed classic in battle of Kansas’ best

Down a pair of scores midway through the fourth quarter, the Eagles stared death to Derby in the eyes.

On fourth-and-22 from the Panthers’ 24, Maize senior quarterback Caleb Grill floated a ball to the corner of the end zone and hit fellow senior Jordon Helm in stride. In a rivalry dominated by the best team in Kansas, the play proved 2018 was different. There was nothing easy about this game for the favorite.

Maize got that big score on the pass from Grill to Helm, but Derby held on for a 35-21 win Friday night in a game that had a multitude of prizes riding on it: the AVCTL I championship, bragging rights of an undefeated season and positioning in the Class 5A playoffs.

It was fun. It was what the Wichita area has been missing, a meaningful, electric game.

“I had a blast,” Grill said. “The outcome, we’re kind of upset, but during the game, it was definitely fun. It’s not fun winning by 20 or 30 points every week, so it’s nice having a game like this.”

Coming into Friday, Wichita’s top teams — Derby, Maize, Northwest and Andale — hadn’t played a game decided by 18 or fewer points since Week 1 in Northwest and Bishop Carroll’s last-second thriller.

While teams such as Blue Valley North and St. Thomas Aquinas have played some of the top teams in state, the Panthers hadn’t played in that competitive of a game since last year’s 6A title game.

Friday was close to that feel.

About two minutes before Grill’s dime to Helm, Derby senior Hunter Igo, a run-first quarterback who proved to have a gun to match, fired a strike to junior receiver Cavion Walker on third-and-18 from the 30. The Panthers went on to score.

Without that touchdown, Derby likely would have tried a 45-yard field goal and could have given the ball back to the Eagles with a chance to tie it at 21-21 after trailing 21-0 at halftime.

“If there’s a play to be made, someone’s going to make it,” Igo said.

Even down to the final seconds after another Igo touchdown to clinch the win, Maize drove the ball to the Derby 1-yard line. With 12 seconds left, the Panthers stopped Grill on a quarterback sneak that would have cut the score to seven.

If Grill would have gotten in, Derby’s lock on the No. 1 seed in Class 6A West would have been in jeopardy. Even in a game they were guaranteed to win, the Panthers didn’t give an inch.

“Green jerseys from here on out,” Derby coach Brandon Clark said. “Hats off to Maize. They’re going to make a push in the playoffs. I know they will, but I’m pretty proud of our kids.

“We play with emotion. We coach with emotion. The kids know that, and they allow it to just kind of sink in for a second and go on to the next play. These games are fun, and emotion is fun. It doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive.”

For Maize, the No. 2 seed likely awaits and the hunt for the Eagles’ first undefeated regular season in school history will have to pick up next year. But Friday wasn’t necessarily about the glitz that came with a win.

Coach Gary Guzman and the Eagles were disappointed to lose, but coming into Friday, Maize’s best win was against Salina Central in Week 7. Before that, Campus in Week 3.

A 14-point game to the No. 1 team in Kansas showed grit that Maize hadn’t had to show this season.

“We knew this game was going to tell us a lot, and I think it has,” Guzman said. “I think it shows what type of team we are and that we can compete with anybody. If you can go toe-to-toe with these guys, you got a chance against anybody.”

Derby wasn’t thrilled either. The Panthers committed silly penalties and turned the ball over on what looked to be a touchdown-scoring drive as Maize senior linebacker Carson Shively stripped running back Tre Washington on his way to the end zone.

The praised Panther defense gave up 21 points, the most of the 2018 season. There was frustration on both sides, but similarly, there was respect, Derby senior cornerback Dax Benway said.

“This game was definitely one of the best I’ve ever played in,” Benway said. “Big props to Maize for a hell of a game.”

This story was originally published October 19, 2018 at 11:40 PM.